New York is one of the world’s great cities – and when it was brought to a standstill by Hurricane Sandy, many questioned the state of the city’s infrastructure – and the country’s – in the face of increasingly destructive weather patterns. On the East Coast of the United States, subway tunnels were flooded, construction sites damaged, roads were left under several feet of water and over 7.5 million people were left without power. As a result, many are wondering what can be done to increase investment into the country’s aging infrastructure – and why it has taken so long for any action to be taken.

During Hurricane Sandy New York City’s aging energy infrastructure was torn asunder as a few feet of water knocked out generators stored in flood-prone locations. Governor Cuomo has squarely placed the blame upon ConEd and LIPA, saying that their response to the city’s power outage was out of touch and ineffective. He has also created a commission to investigate the way that NYC’s utilities responded to the storm, saying: “serious questions have been raised about the adequacy of utility management, structures, resources, the currently regulatory framework and oversight to ensure effective preparation for and response to natural disasters.”

The cost-efficient and fully independent CHP system is able to generate both electrical and thermal energy from the same fuel source, and it can operate completely independent of the grid. Speaking about Siemens’ innovative product, Herb Freedman, a principal of Marion Real Estate, Inc which manages the community said: “Hurricane Sandy hit Co-op City about as hard as it hit most anywhere else in New York, but all residents had power before, during and after the storm.”

While a CHP plant may work for certain sized communities, it is clear that alternative energy infrastructure is also an essential investment. While America’s infrastructure must meet the ongoing needs for natural resources, industrial products, energy, food, transportation, shelter and effective waste management, if it truly wants to continue to be a world leader in the 21st century, sustainable infrastructure must be developed.